#John Carpenter Praises Halloween Kills as the ‘Quintessential Slasher Film’

If John Carpenter is to be believed, and considering the franchise is his baby his word is worth a lot here, Halloween Kills is going to be one hell of a ride. Per Carpenter, the sequel to 2018’s Halloween reboot/sequel will be the quintessential slasher movie. Unfortunately, we still have a long wait before we’re able to find out if Carpenter is being hyperbolic or not but this is quite the claim.

The comments came as part of the virtual version of this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival. John Carpenter, who directed the original 1978 Halloween, gave a master class and received a lifetime achievement award as part of the festival. During the event, Carpenter was asked about Halloween Kills and shared his praise-filled thoughts on the matter. Here’s what he had to say about it.

“It’s the quintessential slasher film. It is so intense…oh my god…it even stuns me how incredible it is. David just did a great job. Can’t wait to have you see it.”

Granted, John Carpenter is on board the project as an executive producer and is providing the score. So it’s not likely he would trash talk the movie. At the same time, John Carpenter is nothing if not honest most of the time. So the praise for what director David Gordon Green accomplished is noteworthy. Especially considering that many would probably consider the original Halloween to be the quintessential slasher.

For what it’s worth, this isn’t the only high praise that the movie has received so far. It has been called a “big” movie by producer Jason Blum, while co-writer Scott Teems called it “bigger, badder” and “meaner” than its predecessor. David Gordon Green also revealed earlier this year that it features the most violent scene of his career. The cast includes Nancy Stephens as Nurse Marion Chambers, Charles Cyphers as Leigh Brackett, Anthony Michael Hall as Tommy Doyle, Kyle Richards as Lindsey Wallace, Jibrail Nantambu as Julian and Robert Longstreet as Lonnie Elam. Both Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney will bring Michael Myers to life again, with Jamie Lee Curtis back once more as Laurie Strode.

As far as plot details go, things are still a bit sketchy but it picks up right after the events of the 2018 movie. Michael Myers, it seemed, was going to burn to death in Laurie Strode’s house. But a teaser trailer revealed that the fire department, trying to save the day, may unleash the beast on Haddonfield yet again. We also know that the sequel will be returning to the Myers house for the first time in a long time.

The original plan was for the sequel to arrive in time for Halloween this year. Unfortunately, given the ongoing uncertainty with movie theaters right now, Universal Pictures and Blumhouse opted to push it back by a full year. Halloween Kills will now hit theaters on October 15, 2021. The next sequel, Halloween Ends, will arrive a year later in 2022. You can check out the full event with John Carpenter from the Fantastia International Film Festival YouTube channel.

Topics: Halloween Kills, Halloween